The National Park Service wants to charge for protest permits

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
– The National Park Service recently announced a proposal to charge people for permits to hold a rally or demonstration on Park Service land. The agency said the fees would cover the costs of putting up fencing to guide crowds, picking up trash, and repairing the grass. The public comment period for the proposal ends today. (DCist, 10/12)

“These are the most far-ranging proposed changes to these rules since the Nixon Administration,” said Arthur Spitzer, the co-legal director of the ACLU of D.C. “While there are a few ways they may be making life easier for demonstrators, in most ways, it looks like they’re trying to make life a lot harder.”

He took issue with the Park Service’s claim that they’ve seen a drastic growth in protest permit requests. “The really big growth in applications in the last few years has been for volleyball permits,” he said.